German Bundesliga football club Hertha Berlin has revealed it is targeting an opening date of July 25, 2025 for a new-look Olympiastadion.
Hertha is currently in the process of assessing the development of a new stadium on the Olympiastadion site, or renovating the existing venue, and provided an update on the process during its ‘Hertha im Dialog’ event.
Built for the German capital’s hosting of the 1936 summer Olympic Games, the Olympiastadion has been Hertha’s home since 1963. However, with a current capacity of around 74,000, Hertha is seeking a more intimate home for football matches.
The stadium primarily serves as the home of Hertha but is also a major athletics venue, having hosted this year’s European Championships. Hertha last year detailed plans to build a 55,000-seat stadium on the site of the current facility, and redevelopment of the venue is also on the table.
Klaus Teichert, director of club subsidiary Hertha BSC Stadion, said: “We are still in talks with the Berlin Senate, planning is in progress, the structure and funding model is already in place, as well as noise and species protection investigations, and we are in talks with the Housing Cooperative and with the district, to find a solution for the residents in the Sportforumstraße. This should happen in 2018.
“We want to sign the leasehold contract for the site in the first quarter of 2019. In early 2020, we want to announce a competition for architects. Construction should ideally start in the first quarter of 2022. On July 25, 2025, we want to open our new stadium.”
This date would coincide with Hertha’s 133rd birthday and Teichert presented further details about the plans in progress. In Bundesliga mode, the new stadium would hold 55,137 fans. While only 20% of fans are currently within 90 metres of the pitch’s centre circle, this would increase to 60% for the new stadium. From the first row of seats, there would be a distance of eight to 10 metres to the pitch instead of the current 36 to 40 metres.
Teichert also said Hertha is keen to involve the club’s fans in the planning process. He added: “We want our fans involved in working groups, for example, when it comes to the design of the Ostkurve, the colour choice for seats or the stadium environment.”
Image: Rebecca Leisten
